Pros/Cons

Pros

Cons

Athleticism

Raw Offensively

Energy

Very Young

High Motor

Tweener

Great Agility

Poor Shooter

Defensive Abilities

-

Great Hands

-

High Upside

-

Why You Might Know Him

Aaron Gordon has been a blue chip prospect for the past couple of seasons. He was ranked fourth on the ESPN 100 when he graduated high school in 2013, behind only Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Julius Randle.

Scouting Report

Gordon is an elite athlete who plays his tail off and provides a ton of energy. He can jump out of the gym and has very good agility. He also has great feet, which play a big role in his ability to defend at a high level. Synergy rates Gordon as an excellent defender. He allowed just .705 points per possession during his freshman season. Gordon is the youngest player in the Draft, which should make anyone’s mouth water. He can already change a game with his defense. With a few years of NBA teaching, he could be a feared defender at the NBA level. Gordon isn’t quite as polished at the offensive end. That’s where his youth really shows. He’s a tweener who plays more like a power forward but possesses the size of a small forward. He has very soft hands and can finish in traffic and through contact. He drives with a purpose. However, he does not have very good touch and does not shoot the ball consistently. He doesn’t have any go-to moves but seems to be most comfortable and natural operating in the post. Gordon does not have a great handle. He dribbles high in transition and doesn’t always know what his next dribble will be when making a move. He could be a lethal above-the-rim weapon if paired with a top-flight floor general, much like DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin are with Chris Paul. Obviously, the Celtics have one such player in Rajon Rondo and Phil Pressey isn’t too far behind with his passing abilities. Whatever team drafts Gordon will understand that they aren’t bringing in a polished player who will dominate the game right away. He is raw offensively, but if a team can develop him to the point where his skill set matches his athletic ability, it will have a star in the making.

Biography

The apple didn’t fall far from the tree when it comes to Aaron Gordon. He became a basketball star, just like his father, Ed. Aaron was born on Sept. 16, 1995 in San Jose, Calif. to Ed and Shelley Davis. He has one brother and one sister, and all three went on to play Division I basketball. Gordon played varsity basketball for four years at Archbishop Mitty High School. He took his teams to new heights, as they won the first state titles in the school’s history in 2011 and 2012. Gordon was named California Mr. Basketball in both 2012 and 2013, becoming just the fourth player in history to win the award twice. The other three players are John Williams, Jason Kidd and Tyson Chandler. Gordon also played for the USA U19 basketball team in 2013. He earned MVP honors in the tournament while leading the US to a gold medal at the World Championship in Prague. As one might imagine, Gordon was one of the hottest recruits in the nation. He was ranked fourth on the ESPN 100 list, behind only Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Julius Randle. Everyone wanted him, but only few could contend for him. Arizona, Washington, Kentucky and Oregon all made offers to Gordon. He wound up choosing to play for Sean Miller at Arizona. Gordon averaged 12.4 PPG and 8.0 RPG during his freshman season, which led to him receiving the PAC-12 Freshman of the Year award. He declared for the NBA Draft on April 15.